NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs articles from June 2002

NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs archives from June 2002

GUATEMALA: POOR HIV/AIDS MONITORING HIDES AN EPIDEMIC.
June 6, 2002... By David Tobin [The author is a staff writer for Inforpress Centroamericana/Central American Report, published in Guatemala.] A 2000 law requires the Instituto Guatemalteco de Seguro Social (IGSS) to provide anti-retroviral drugs to...

REGION: U.S. AGRICULTURAL SUBSIDIES MAY SPELL DOOM FOR FREE TRADE AGREEMENT WITH CENTRAL AMERICA.
June 6, 2002... Despite President George W. Bush's stated intention of securing a free trade pact with Central America, new subsidies to US agriculture have raised doubts about the possibility of such an agreement. In January, Bush announced his intention...

NICARAGUA: PRESIDENT ENRIQUE BOLANOS' ANTI-CORRUPTION CAMPAIGN IS QUESTIONED AFTER FIRING OF PROSECUTOR.
June 6, 2002... While Nicaraguan President Enrique Bolanos showed early progress in fighting corruption in Nicaragua, his commitment to continue the anti-corruption battle has recently come into question. The recent firing of anti-corruption prosecutor...

NICARAGUA: CHURCH-STATE SCHISM DEVELOPS OVER ANTI-CORRUPTION CAMPAIGN.
June 13, 2002... By Velia Jaramillo [The author is a staff writer for Inforpress Centroamericana, published in Guatemala.] In Nicaragua, Cardinal Miguel Obando y Bravo and the Catholic Church are living turbulent times. On the heels of a regime in...

CUBAN ECONOMY HURT BY SUSPENSION OF VENEZUELAN OIL SHIPMENTS UNDER 2000 AGREEMENT.
June 13, 2002... The April 11 coup against Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez (see NotiSur, 2002-04-19) has had serious consequences for Cuba as coup leaders abruptly stopped scheduled shipments of oil to Cuba. Shipments did not resume after the collapse of the...

REGION: NICARAGUA & COSTA RICA SIDESTEP SAN JUAN RIVER DISPUTE TO FOCUS INSTEAD ON TRADE & INTEGRATION.
June 20, 2002... Nicaragua and Costa Rica have decided to put aside their differences regarding access to the San Juan river, which marks the border between the two countries. While the original disputes remain unresolved, Costa Rica has backed off its...

REGION: AN OLD BORDER CONFLICT CONTINUES BETWEEN BELIZE & GUATEMALA.
June 20, 2002... By Gretchen Alther and David Tobin [The authors are staff writers for Inforpress Centroamericana, published in Guatemala] The territorial conflict between Belize and Guatemala and a long history of negotiations continue to affect the...

GUATEMALA: DISGRACED BANKER REMAINS FREE AFTER DEFRAUDING STATE OF MILLIONS.
June 20, 2002... Guatemalan banker Francisco Alvarado MacDonald, who engaged in negligent lending practices as the principal shareholder of two Guatemalan banks, has evaded imprisonment by paying a fine of approximately US$5,300. Many suggest that government...

CUBA: GOVERNMENT CONFRONTS ECONOMIC CRISIS WITH PRICE INCREASES & RESTRUCTURING OF SUGAR INDUSTRY.
June 27, 2002... Responding to the current economic crisis, the Cuban government ordered unprecedented price hikes in dollar stores (Tiendas de Recaudacion de Divisa, TRD), increases in gasoline prices, cuts in energy use, and a radical restructuring of the...

GUATEMALA: GOVERNMENT ACCUSED OF COMPLICITY IN THREATS & ABUSES AGAINST HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS, OTHER SOCIAL ACTIVISTS.
June 27, 2002... A UN special human rights rapporteur who carried out a five-day investigation in Guatemala in late May concluded that clandestine armed groups were making threats and committing abuses against human rights defenders and other social activists....

EL SALVADOR: PRESIDENT FRANCISO FLORES DECLARES ACHIEVEMENTS AFTER THIRD YEAR WHILE OPPOSITION CRITICIZES ECONOMIC POLICIES.
June 27, 2002... On June 1, Salvadoran President Francisco Flores of the right-wing Alianza Republicana Nacionalista (ARENA) presented his report to the Legislative Assembly on his third year in office. Flores said his administration's achievements included...